Climbing from Rock Bottom
by mindjumbler
Summary: Alex shows up during Piper's rage against Pennsatucky, but Piper has to snap back to reality and she realizes how many more mistakes she's caused as opposed to solved. Being sent to solitary she begins to question everything about herself and who she really wants to be with, even if they have moved on.
1. Chapter 1

I was in the midst of defending myself from Pennsatucky and her 'self-righteous' venture when the door squawked open and heavily slammed closed. Alex saw the act differently. It didn't really upset her that I was beating Pennsatucky lifeless. I think it was more the blood painting the snow and clinging to my fists that caused her shocked expression to flash and disappear before racing toward me with urgency.

She grabbed the neck of my scrubs and pulled me to my feet, standing me straight up to face her. Without taking a second breath she shoved me against the fence and pinned me at the shoulders.

"I don't know what she did, and I'm sure she damn well deserved it…" her sentence slowed and she looked over at Tiffany's body. She wasn't moving but she was twitching, bringing Alex's unconcerned attention (for Pennsatucky's life anyway) back to me. I could feel her warm breath against my face, "…SHU; is that what you want, Chapman?" she pushed me further into the fence and I glanced swiftly between Tiffany and Alex, realizing I had missed a great portion of her rant.

"I- I don't know...she was going to kill me…" I whimpered, blinking and looking at Alex. I relaxed my body towards her to take solace and pretend that the past ten minutes hadn't happened. Relieved that Alex had followed us out, I had hope that she would forgive me for earlier.

"Stop, Chapman," she urged. She pressed me back up against the fence and looked me sternly in the eye. My heart dropped at seeing how coldly she looked at me. _What are you here for, then?_ I almost vocalized my thoughts until Pennsatucky began to regain consciousness.

"My name is Piper, remember?" I complained as she moved away from me and toward Pennsatucky. Her indifference stung worse than the wind that was starting to pick up. I followed Alex's gaze and fear suddenly struck me. Not only had I just lost the two most important people in my life, but I was definitely going to SHU – or even worse, increased sentence. "I'm sorry, I-"

"Sorry isn't going to fix this one," she retorted. I begged for her to stay and help, but she turned and left, the door crashing closed and leaving me to worry about what to do next. I had no one to help me, and only my mistakes to live with. I dreaded the moment that Pennsatucky would stand and mouth off at me and then run to Healy or whoever she saw first. I considered running before she could, but instead I pushed the screwdriver and her stupid cross thing and kicked them far off to the side before kneeling beside her and trying to help.

Maybe it would reduce my SHU time.


	2. Chapter 2

Mr. Healy didn't want to bother with details when he found out what had happened. I was instantly sent off to SHU, obviously, but I had no idea where Pennsatucky was going. She didn't look overly injured, in all honesty. I think the worst of it was just a split lip and she was missing two teeth (which made her smile look a little less crooked, thankfully).

But now I found myself back in solitary. I wasn't sure if I liked it better than having to see Alex ignore me all the time. Or if I liked not being able to receive mail or make phone calls to people who were evidently disappointed with me for fucking up with Larry. Maybe my absence would make Alex pity me, knowing all the horrible things about SHU, or maybe Larry would try to call me and then it would scare him that he wouldn't be able to contact me?

Either way, I was alone with mixed feelings. I paced the room and called into the hole in the wall hoping that someone was on the other side. No luck. I haven't even had a meal yet so it's either they're starving me out or it's only been a few hours. I sat down on the slab of metal hanging from the wall. I cried, but I wasn't sure if it was because of fear, pain or anger.

Two meals later I heard yelling from a familiar female voice. By the way it made my head hurt I could only come to one conclusion: Pennsatucky. I hoped that she would be on the far end of the hallway so I didn't have to hear her. That was supposed to be the meaning of solitary, right? No social contact and tortured by being alone?

The little hole in the door slid open and I froze. Healy wouldn't put her in here with me, would he?

"Chapman! You've been a pain in my ass for quite a while now and until you and Doggett figure your shit out, you're going to be neighbours." _He wouldn't_, I begged silently.

"Mr. Healy, I swear to you it was only self-defence, I didn't mean to hurt her I didn't know what to do; she was going to kill me. I'll do more hours, I won't participate in lesbian activity, and I'll keep to myself and never break another rule." It was useless because he didn't care. The door opened and in came cuffed Pennsatucky. With her on one side of the room and me on the other, we each had a wrist locked to one side of the bed, enough so we could banter, but not kill each other.

The door closed and the first few minutes were silent. Like I thought, Doggett's lip was split and teeth missing, but her mouth seemed a little less raunchy. I almost thought to comment on it and say that she should thank me for the dental work, but I opted against causing drama with her, hoping that getting along would mean less time spent with her.

As expected, Doggett's first words were a slur of "God-this" and "God-that", and it didn't stop for days. She would pace as far as her cuffs would let her, back and forth practicing her preaching, praying to God and giving me a headache that never seemed to cease.

I endured her prayers until she began to address me in them.

"Lord Almighty, I see the path that you've asked me to take. I know you're going to give her one more chance and I just pray for her soul, her demented soul that she will take you into her heart and rid herself of the demon path she has chosen to take!"

"Will you shut up already?" I stood facing her, but she ignored me. "Hello? Earth to Pennsa-fucked up? I just wanted to have peace and quiet while I was here. I don't know what I was expecting when I got sentenced to fifteen months, but I sure as hell know it wasn't meeting up with my ex and beating up a meth-head bible thumper! So I would appreciate it if you'd pretend I didn't exist and leave me alone because, quite frankly, I was going to go home and marry my fiancé, and have a pretty normal life; one that you would never have second guessed if you'd passed by me on your way to preaching in the real world!" enraged, I sat down on my side of the room and curled my knees up to my chest.

She stayed silent for a while, still facing the opposite wall. Before she could speak the flap in the door opened providing our meal for the rest of the night. We slept in silence and (thankfully) she didn't pray again, or at least it wasn't as loud.

* * *

The next morning when I woke up I noticed Pennsatucky with her knees on the floor by her side of the bed, elbows up and eyes closed. She was mouthing something for a minute and then opened her eyes. I tried to look away when she looked at me, but it was was noticeable that I'd been staring.

"I keep praying that they'll let us out of here so I can go back to my peers, and you to yours," she said, solemnly.

Surprised, I think my mouth gaped open. "W-why _us_?" she got up, one knee and then another and sat beside me on the bed.

"Because he's told me to forgive you and let you go on to your fiancé without trouble. The longer you're here, the longer you'll have temptation to succumb to Vause and her devil ways," she began to preach and if it weren't for the fact that she was talking at a respectable tone for once, I'd have told her to back the fuck off.

Besides, what would I have said? I broke Alex's heart and I want her back but she won't have me? Or just as horrible, I broke Larry's heart too and he won't marry me. She would surely start to make my life difficult again, wouldn't she?

Breakfast came and we ate in silence on opposite sides of the room. We didn't talk and when Healy noticed that we were no longer yelling and being hostile with each other he moved her to the cell beside me. It was nice to be able to walk around again, freely and without metal keeping me in a one foot diameter space. However, I was beginning to get lonely and my indecision between Alex and Larry (whether it mattered or not) continued to eat at me.

What was I supposed to do? I had done so much over these past ten years to rebuild my life. I had a job, a business, a used-to-be fiancé. Would he take me back? Did I even want that? Why wouldn't I? Why wouldn't I want a happy family life, in a beautiful home that I still haven't seen, with kids and joy and growing old with my best friend?

I began to appreciate everything he'd done for me and us since I entered the facility. All his efforts and I betrayed him so easily. I was beginning to feel a horrible emptiness in the pit of my stomach when the heavy door swung open.

"Chapman, you're out of solitary on probational terms," he said in a monotone voice. I wasn't sure if I wanted to be out. How long had it been since I'd been put in SHU? I had been trying to count the meals, remembering three a day and I had only one meal the first day, but I was so disoriented that I couldn't remember the number.

"How long was I in solitary for?" I nervously asked. He shackled me and led me harshly out of solitary as he mumbled the words _a little over a month_. "What about Pennsatucky?"

"None of your business," he dared me to ask another question but the words _probational terms_ echoed in my head. Although I wasn't sure if I even wanted to be out of SHU and have to face Alex again, I figured that I probably wouldn't have a chance at getting out on good terms if I spent more time alone. Then again, what did that matter? What did I have to go home to at this point?

* * *

I had a small collection of letters given to me when I was reassigned a dorm. It was almost annoying that I'd lost my bunk and dorm since solitary, but being out of routine meant not seeing anyone I recognized just yet. So I sat down on my bed, bottom bunk (thank god) and went through the letters I had received over the last month. All of them were from Larry, but none of them were dated past him leaving me, so I guess he didn't notice my absence.

"Would you look at that," a voice exclaimed in surprise. Nicky took a step into my dorm and grinned, "You're alive! Man, I thought you were going to spend the rest of your sentence down there, what happened?"

"Nothing really. What's new around here? Has it really been a month?" I almost felt like I was starting my sentence all over again.

"Yeah, quite a few newbies now, but nothing's changed. Come down to the caf, it's almost lunch time and I'm sure everyone wants to know you're okay," she urged. She took a backwards step out the door and glanced down the hallway. I picked up the unread letters and placed them under my pillow, but when I turned around to face Nicky again, there she stood with her new prison girlfriend: Alex.

* * *

**Hope you guys are enjoying it. I'm kinda just letting my mind run rampant and your support is amazing. Reviews and ideas welcomed and appreciated!**


	3. Chapter 3

She hadn't noticed me standing there, I'm guessing, because when she did she gave me a once-over and walked away. Did I mention how awkward of a couple they looked together? They didn't touch or kiss or even hug and I could just sense the awkward radiating from them when Alex said she'd meet up with her later in the chapel. Great.

"I, uh, I'm not that hungry, Nichols," I stammered as Alex returned from wherever she came. I sat back down on my bunk and took in a deep breath. Was this why Alex was so distant on Christmas?

"Piper, it's not what you think, really, we just-"

"You just fuck the girl I love in the chapel and pretend that I never existed?" Wait, the girl I love? "Thanks, but no thanks Nichols, I think I'm going to skip on lunch for now. Don't be late for your date," a little dramatic on my part, I'm sure, but I was beginning to feel dizzy and as if oxygen was a rare commodity.

"Piper, we don't fuck. Oddly enough, we just talk…a lot. Besides, you chose your fiancé over Alex, what ever happened to loving him, huh? Do you ever realize how selfish you are?" she sighed, as if it hurt her to say it as much as it hurt me to hear it. It was true, though. Nicky was always good at saying things for how it was.

I watched her shift her weight from one leg to the other and slowly back out of my dorm room. I was probably a bit tough on her because she was right; I did choose Larry over Alex. Why should I have expected her to wait for me? She even said she wouldn't, so why had I hoped she would?

I took a deep breath and reached under my pillow for the letters. I opened a random one and looked at the date. Should I open them all and read them in order? Would it matter?

_Pipes,_

_I'm sorry that I missed visitation last week. I hope your mother wasn't too hard on you. She's trying the best she can, I guess, but we both know she's a little rough on the edges. Polly seems to be doing well with the business and they had the baby shower. I signed your name in the card, don't worry, I got your back._

_I'll be going out to nowhere land with your brother for the week, but I promise I won't miss another visitation, okay? I've sent a few books for you. Hope they keep you busy. Don't do anything stupid, and don't forget to call me. I miss you._

_Love,_

_Larry._

All of the letters began to make me feel horrendous, so after reading a few I began to just skim them all before hiding them in my locker. My stomach growled. Maybe I shouldn't have skipped lunch.

I could shower at least – without being watched by a guard. So I grabbed my things and headed towards the bathrooms. The recreation room was fairly crowded when I passed. I could hear the TV on one side and Pennsatucky preaching on the other. I guess things had returned to normal at this point. Did people know of my reappearance and simply not care?

When I got to the bathroom I hung my towel and stripped down. It was amazing to finally be alone, so I closed my eyes and let the hot water bathe my skin. I felt as if I could wash away everything that I had done. I did my time in solitary to make up for Pennsatucky, surely Alex or Larry would let me make it up to them?

Then again, that was the problem. I couldn't bear to lose either of them and neither of them would take me back if they knew I still felt torn between them.

The obvious choice was Larry, I think, because my stay here was nothing compared to the time I had promised to spend with him. He was a reasonable life and I loved him. He was my best friend and he loved me, put up with everything that I had put him through even though I hadn't asked him.

It wasn't reasonable to go after Alex. Not only had she obtained a new "prison wife" but what would we/she do after we were released? I was sure she had at least double my time, if not more than that. Would I be able to do what Larry had done for me, for Alex? Was she really going to stop the drug business and if so, what was she planning on doing?

I had thrown my life away once for her, and lost it because of her. I had recreated it and found Larry and had my life planned out before me. Why would I knowingly throw everything I had away for Alex who destroyed everything I had rebuilt?

My head began to hurt and I grew tired of asking myself the same questions over and over again. I pushed my wet hair out of my face and shut off the shower. _Maybe I should just take things day by day for now_, I thought to myself. Certainly something would make sense, wouldn't it?

* * *

_Her lips grazed mine and I could feel her grin before kissing me again. I opened my eyes to look right at her, kissing the woman on top of me. _I heart you, _I whispered, mocking her from when we'd been carelessly cuddled in her bunk._

I heart you, too, _she responded before planting one on my lips. She began kissing down my neck, softly at first and rougher as she continued. Her hands travelled my body, cupping my breasts and then moving downward toward my hips. _I want you to cum,_ she smirked. Her tongue circled my breasts before gently sucking on each nipple. Then she made her way down my body, nibbling on my hip bones and teasing me until I could barely stand it. I reached for her and pressed her lips against me, my hand on the back of her head, between my thighs._

_My hips moved forcefully against her in rhythmic motion, up-down, up-down. I moaned and she slipped two fingers inside me, matching the beat of my breathing and speeding up, causing me to become breathless. My head fell back, _Alex, I'm cumming, I'm cumming! –

Something was wrong. I opened my eyes and looked around me, only my bunk mates were in the room and they were sleeping, except for one.

"Having a wet one, are you?" she asked me, snickering.

"Uh, I- I guess so, why? What did I do?" I stuttered, hoping I hadn't done anything embarrassing.

"Honey, your hand is in your pants and you've been moaning for an "Alex". You woke me up actually, want me to finish you?"

* * *

**Chapter four might be a day or two before I get it up. Hope you're all enjoying! Reviews/ideas/corrections welcome!**


	4. Chapter 4

Nicky and Alex came in at staggered times for the rest of the week from their chapel 'talks'. Usually Alex first, then Nicky, but today was different. Nicky came in and made her way through the lunch line talking to the people around her. Why I was watching her with contempt was beyond me, to be honest.

"I see you've met Cooper," Morello said to me, taking a seat. Her voice irritated me. It was like a high pitch, only not really, kind of voice with a little bit of a whiny rasp. She licked her lips while open-mouth smiling – no, grinning as if there was something suspicious she wanted to know about.

"You two have met before?" I responded dully.

She let out a laugh and didn't bother with explaining. It annoyed me. "Just be careful of what you get yourself into, Chapman. Cooper's quite the lesbian." She smiled at Cooper, knowingly, but it aggravated me that she seemed to have something on her mind, an assumption almost about Cooper and I sitting together at lunch.

"I kind-of figure that out upon meeting, actually," I could feel my cheeks start to burn as I remembered the night Cooper and I had first met. Cooper was tall, with an average build. She had a sweet smile that reminded me that it wasn't going to be like this forever; I'd be out of here soon enough and whether or not Alex (or Larry) forgave me, I'd be fine and still alive. She hadn't told me exactly why she was here, but she had this ability to make me stop stressing out so much about what everyone was expecting from me. Maybe it sounds cliché, but it was nice that she was able to get my mind off of everything I had been forced to think about over the past month.

Morello gave me a look as if she had just put the pieces together. Could she get any more annoying this morning? "What'd you two do?" she said elongating every vowel and winking obnoxiously. "C'mon, Chapman, don't be shy," she encouraged. Then she leaned closer, "I won't tell anyone, including we know who. Did you guys make up, considering everything that's, you know, going on?" I could only assume she meant Alex as "we know who". I don't think I'd told anyone about Larry leaving me.

"Morello, will you leave the poor girl alone?" Cooper interrupted, "She looks as if she's going to faint from an anxiety attack with your interrogating her."

They squabbled like kid siblings would over minor things and laughed together. It was nice to listen to them actually, and I'm pretty sure I smiled when Cooper came up with witty responses to everything Morello had to say. _It's about time someone isn't afraid of hurting your feelings, Morello_, I thought to myself.

They hadn't stopped when Nicky had sit down with us, making me uncomfortable. We stayed silent while the other two chattered and, to my dismay, Alex had joined us, on the farthest end of the table, away from me. I wasn't sure if I should have been more uncomfortable about Alex being around, her paying complete attention to only Nicky, or the fact that everyone at the table had someone to talk to, leaving me to sit as if there were ants in my pants.

In fact, everyone (mostly Alex) was ignoring me so well that I began to even forget that I was sitting there until Morello jabbed me playfully in the side. "I'm glad y'all aren't arguing anymore. Good that there aren't hard feelings lingering around, you know?" What was she talking about? "That month away from each other definitely changed a lot, I'm guessing. We got ourselves a new set of prison wives. We have the never-on-time-for-breakfast Nichols and Vause team," she winked at them, "and then we have Chapman and Cooper who are 'just friends'. I mean, look at y'all sharing a table all friendly-like."

Alex slowly looked at me for the first time since the night of the Christmas pageant; almost as if couldn't believe what she'd just heard. Her thin eyebrows raised themselves almost to say, "Really?" and then with a slight twist of her head she breathed out an "I'm-not-so-surprised" laugh. It was the coldest look I had ever seen from her to me and even though she wasn't looking at me any more, I could feel my heart sinking with shame.

I wanted so badly to run to her and beg on my knees to forgive me and never look at me as coldly as she just did again. I wanted to scream and plead for her to take me into her arms. Take me anywhere, but here, please; somewhere, anywhere, Bali or Pluto – I didn't care. She didn't make a smart-ass remark or comment on anything like she normally would. She just stared at her food for a long, hard second before silently getting up and bussing her tray and leaving.

Nicky followed her and Cooper gave Morello a punishing look. "What?" Morello questioned, "Did I say something?"

I played with my food wishing that the petty high school drama would end. When lunch was over everyone except Cooper and I (unassigned) went to their jobs, and we went back to our dorm.

"I'm sorry about Morello," Cooper said, apologetically. "She doesn't seem to have a filter sometimes." I didn't respond. "Is that Alex?" I nodded and she looked at me watching our footsteps fall in sync. I was so entranced by my footsteps that I almost missed our doorway.

When she noticed she gently reached out for me, barely in time to touch my pinky and get my attention. I jerked my head up, "I'm sorry, I'm not really able to focus right now." I looked at her and she smiled, it was nice to have someone smile at me like she was.

"It's okay," she consoled. Silence came over us as we entered the dorm. I laid down, staring at the bottom of the top bunk above me and Cooper climbed to the top of hers on the other side of the room. I think she was laying on her side and watching me as if I would suddenly break down crying and she wanted to be able to jump down and hug me the second I started.

"Do you love her?"

* * *

**The fifth chapter is written! To be posted this weekend, either Saturday or Sunday. Thanks for your reviews, too, the support really helps.**


	5. Chapter 5

I wasn't sure what to say to her when I heard those words, again. I imagined my phone call with Larry when he had asked me the same question. I remembered sobbing and wishing it weren't true, but I did. I did love Alex, and I did love Larry and I didn't know which path I was supposed to take because I wanted them both. I wanted them all to myself and I wanted to be free to go back and forth between them. That wouldn't be love, though, would it?

I told Cooper this and she swung her feet over the ledge of her bunk. She didn't talk, but listened to me as I went on about everything that had occurred since I had arrived here.

"You don't think I'm selfish, do you?" I asked her, knowing she'd say yes. She did but she jumped down off her bunk and sat beside me on my bed.

"I don't think you're selfish to hurt other people though, and I don't think you're being manipulative. That's the worst kind of selfish. You just need to realize that what you do can hurt other people," she had her hands in her lap, folded together as if she was trying to figure out what she wanted to say next. "When you followed Alex around and carried that money, it was fine, for you anyway. You just enjoyed your adventure and focused on the great life that Alex was providing you. Am I right?"

I nodded.

"Now consider this, what was she doing with that money? Where did it come from and what did it achieve? At the end of the day, it was harming and feeding people with addictions. You may not have been using the drugs and you might not have seen the people that you were hurting, but you were hurting people with your ignorance."

"How does ignorance even have anything to –"

"Piper, stop. I'm not insulting you, and I'm not berating you… I'm answering your question. No, I don't think you're selfish. I think you've developed some sort of immunity to other people's pain. You cried on the phone when you had to be honest with Larry, not because he was hurt."

"Alex thinks we're sleeping together."

"You need to stop focusing on Alex and Larry. Go back to reading your books, I'll read them with you. When you get reassigned, focus only on exactly what you're doing. At lunch, don't think about Alex in a romantic way, even if she's right in front of you. Instead of hating Nicky for healing the wounds you made in Alex, thank her," she paused, "What are you doing when you get out of here?"

"I, I really don't know…" I faltered, "I was supposed to get married to Larry and live happily ever after."

"Do you still want to do that?"

I hesitated.

"If you feel the need to resolve issues with him then call him and be absolutely honest, but you need to stop depending on people and ignoring the pain that you're causing." As much as I hated to admit it, she was right.

She climbed back up onto the top of her bunk and I pulled out a pen and paper.

_Larry,_

_I understand that you probably don't want to hear from me, or maybe it hurts you to hear from me. For that, and everything else I've caused, I'm sorry. I know sorry doesn't fix everything, and it may not fix anything at all, but I realize that I have not been honest with you about who I am. What's worse is that I haven't been honest with myself about who I am._

_I never meant to hurt you or drag you into the mess that has become me. I'm very afraid that I'm more myself in here than I was before I was jailed. I'm afraid that I never dealt with the feelings that I had for Alex, and you're right, I do love her. But I love you, too. I love that you're my best friend and I love everything that you've done for me. I'm sorry that I haven't been as decent to you in return._

_I don't mean to make excuses and I don't expect you to forgive me, but I wanted you to know that I'm not going to connect with you or Alex for a while – whether it matters to you or not. I'm going to spend this time correcting the very reason I've been sentenced to fifteen months here._

_Sincerely,_

_Piper_

I sealed it in an envelope and addressed it, then set it aside so I could begin the second one.

_Alex,_

_I know you won't speak to me and maybe this is more for me than it is for you, but I want you to know that I am truly sorry about everything. I never meant to hurt you, again. Maybe you're already over it and moved on with Nichols, but I saw in the way you looked at me today how hurt you were thinking that I've slept with Cooper. I didn't._

_As you probably know by now, Larry has left me also, so yes, I'm alone. I am what I've feared most and I don't know what to do with myself. I'm selfish and heartless and I wish that I could make things better._

_I'm sorry for leaving you when you needed me most._

_Piper_

I folded the second one in an envelope and wrote Alex's name on the front then slipped out the doorway and toward her bunk before everyone's jobs ended.

* * *

When I returned to the dorm Healy was standing at the doorway.

"Excuse me," I said quietly. Mr. Healy looked at me with disgust and only sidestepped enough for me to squeeze past him. Cooper was packing her bags, "Have you been assigned, already?"

"Yeah, I'll be down in A bunks, if you need me, okay?" My heart dropped. I did need her. I needed her to talk to me like she had been for the past few nights when I couldn't sleep and I needed her to tell me to suck it up and stop complaining. I needed her because when I thought I was alone she told me that it was my own fault - truth that I very much needed - but also that she would never leave me.

"I do need you, already...still," I inaudibly whimpered. "I don't think I could ever not need you." She heard the last one and stopped what she was doing to look at me.

"Pipes, you don't need me right now. You keep doing what I told you and come spend time with me when you get a chance. I'm still in the same prison as you, don't worry," she smiled that smile that made my body stop shaking.

"You're right," I smiled, embarrassed that I thought, for even a second, that I wouldn't see her again.

"Chapman, you're being reassigned, too," Healy said harshly. "Back down to B dorms. Hurry up."

"Which bunk, sir?" I asked. "Same as last, but your job was filled so I'll tell you later on where they're going to put you."

He left with a snort of disgust and I began to gather my things. I asked Cooper if she'd been assigned a job yet to make small talk and try to focus on the present instead of everything I had royally messed up.

"I'm in laundry," she said. I stayed quiet, hoping that her and Alex would get along or at least completely avoid each other. Or maybe it was just me who was uncomfortable about it. Surely Alex wouldn't be happy about it, unless or until she read my letter explaining that Cooper and I weren't sleeping together. Besides, she was with Nichols now. Maybe she'd just refocus herself on her new prison wife and ignore working with Cooper. "Piper, what is wrong with you?"

"What?" I turned around and faced her.

"You get set off by the littlest things and then clench up like a lady who has to shit but ain't got a toilet," she laughed and came toward me. Looking down at me and opening her arms she welcomed me into a hug. I stood still, too afraid to touch her and get in trouble for "lesbian activity" and unsure even of what she wanted to hug me for. "I'm not a boogie man, Piper, come here."

Finally, I obliged and fell into her arms. Everything that I had been carrying around that day, no matter how many times she told me to "stop, relax and let go of it", fell off my shoulders and into her arms. I tucked my face into the crook of her neck, closed my eyes and took a deep breath. Her arms held me close and securely against her and she rubbed my back.

"Meet me outside when you're done taking your things to your new dorm, okay?" she whispered into my ear, "Bring your favourite book and I'll bring one from my collection. Don't be too long though because supper starts soon."

I didn't let go while I gently moved my head up and down, attempting to resemble some sort of nod. When she eventually grabbed her bags and left my sight I wasn't sure if I was still scared I'd never see her again or relieved that she cared so much, but I did as she told me and quickly packed my things to take to my new bunk. When I got to my new (old) bunk, I didn't bother to unpack. I grabbed my favourite novel and fast-walked outside to the trees beside the track.

* * *

**Chapter six might be a while, I'm out of town and very busy, but I've also gotten a few reviews that are making me wonder how I'd like the next chapter to go. Give me till Thursday and if there's not another by then I apologize perfusely. **


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